Century Packaging Invests in UV Capabilities

EAST BRUNSWICK, N.J. -- For Century Packaging, Inc., a new Mitsubishi Diamond 3000LX represents the kind of strategic investment that will reap huge rewards in increased print volume and revenues.

"The main reason we purchased this press was to stay current with the latest printing technology," said Tom Picciolo Jr., CEO and president. "With the Diamond 3000LX, we will be in an excellent position to take on the competition and grow our sales. We are looking to add 25 percent in sales."

While maintaining a technological edge over the competition is the goal of all printing companies, this is especially true when printing for the cosmetics industry. And cosmetics is a market that Century Packaging believes the 40-inch Diamond 3000LX will have its greatest impact.

"We will definitely focus more on cosmetics packaging," Picciolo said. "The quality of packaging is extremely important to cosmetics manufacturers. Basically, packaging sells the product. Because of that, cosmetics companies know which printers are investing in their production capabilities and which ones aren't. They are interested in doing business with printers that put money back into their companies in the form of brand-new equipment."

Picciolo has been reinvesting in his company since he launched Century Packaging in 1986. He built the folding carton manufacturer "from the ground up" into a $10 million concern with 48 employees and a 45,000-square-foot plant, including warehouse space. In addition to cosmetics companies, current clients include suppliers of pharmaceutical, health care, nutritional, food and automotive products.

Picciolo easily lists the advantages that the Diamond 3000LX offers Century Packaging to help broaden its customer base.

"We can perform more jobs in a shift. We save money due to reduced materials waste. We have better control over the finished products. The print quality is superior to anything we have seen before," he said.

The Diamond 3000LX prints on paper, board and plastic ranging from 0.0016 to 0.040 inches in thickness.

"In the folding carton industry, there are a limited number of presses that we can run 100-pound paper to 40-point board," Picciolo said. "We normally run 28-point board, but this new press affords more flexibility to accept jobs that require a thicker caliper of board."

Century Packaging outfitted the six-color press with SimulChanger. The automated plate-changing system replaces all six plates with new ones simultaneously in just over one minute.

"SimulChanger doesn't merely change the plates," Picciolo noted. "The plates are in perfect register on press. We can get up to color in 10 minutes with only 100 wasted sheets. The savings on materials alone are probably 20 percent. Our average press run is 15,000 to 20,000 sheets. The fast makereadies and low sheet waste will allow us to print shorter runs competitively."

Picciolo pointed to the automated washing systems on the press as another major source of savings.

"There is much less time involved in the wash-up between jobs," he said. "This also cuts down on the expense of rags, and we aren't dealing with harsh chemicals."

Prior to installing the Diamond 3000LX, Century Packaging outsourced coating work that called for ultraviolet (UV) coatings. Equipping the new press to accommodate both aqueous and UV coatings not only eliminated a barrier to efficiency but also provided a magnet for jobs.

"Whenever you outsource a job, you are at the mercy of the other company," Picciolo said. "It is expensive and not controllable. At present, UV jobs account for 15 percent of our work. Within a year, I would project that will grow to 30 percent."